More individuals aged 55 to 65 were working later in life and spending less time in leisure activities in 2005.  Both men and women were spending roughly an hour a day more in paid work than in 1998. 

Among men aged 55 to 64 this increase in paid work from 3.2 to 4.4 hours a day on average was accompanied by a decline in the time they devoted to both unpaid work and active leisure.  In 2005, these men spend 3.5 hours a day on average on active leisure, half an hour less than they did in 1998.  During this time the time spent on unpaid work declined from 3.4 to 3.1 hours a day on average.

Among women of the same age, the biggest impact was a decline of more than half an hour a day in the time they devoted to active leisure.  They spent most of their time (about 4.8 hours a day on average) on unpaid work, exactly the same as in both 1998 and 1992.  In 2005, they spent 2.4 hours a day on average on paid work, up about an hour from 1992.  But their time for active leisure fell from 4.3 hours to 3.6 hours.

In 2005, two-thirds (68%) of men aged 55 to 64 had jobs, up from 59% in 1998.  Among their female counterparts, 51% had jobs in 2005, compared with 41% six years earlier.